Agricultural Outreach Coordinator

GENERAL:

The Colorado Agrivoltaic Learning Center (CALC) (www.coagrivoltaic.org) showcases clean energy generation coupled with local food production to inspire and educate our community into taking action to improve land stewardship within solar arrays. CALC is based out of Jack’s Solar Garden, just south of Longmont, Colorado where on-site tours, events, educational opportunities, research projects, and volunteer activities occur. CALC is a Project of the Colorado Nonprofit Development Center (CNDC) that is dedicated to fostering a healthy and vibrant nonprofit sector in Colorado by enhancing the effective and efficient use of community resources. CNDC values partnerships, respect, accountability, innovation, and letting learning guide our work. CNDC provides comprehensive fiscal sponsor services to emerging and transitioning charitable groups (“Project”) serving their communities in areas as varied as education, arts, human services, and public health. CALC is one of these Projects.

SUMMARY OF RESPONSIBILITIES:

The Agricultural Outreach Coordinator’s main role is reaching out to the agricultural communities in Colorado’s Front Range to provide education on agrivoltaics and the possibilities of working with solar companies to create agribusinesses within solar arrays. This position works closely with the Executive Director to develop a network of farmers, ranchers, gardeners, permaculturalists, or other areas of agribusiness interested in having access to lands to test their agribusiness. The Coordinator will spend the majority of their time going to agricultural meetings, presenting about agrivoltaics, connecting with individual agribusiness leaders, and helping the Executive Director understand the opportunities for supporting potential agribusinesses within solar arrays.

The Agricultural Outreach Coordinator is expected to be bilingual (English and Spanish) in order to reach the overwhelming majority of possible agribusiness entrepreneurs in Colorado’s Front Range. This person is also expected to already have a network of people in the defined region to assist the Colorado Agrivoltaic Learning Center in connecting potential agribusinesses with participating existing solar arrays. The main target audiences for the Agricultural Outreach Coordinator are the latino community and other frontline communities across Colorado.

The Agricultural Outreach Coordinator will be expected to spend 2-3 days per month at Jack’s Solar Garden during the growing season to learn about agrivoltaics, work with staff and partners, participate in meetings and/or events, and generally be a part of our small community. Note that travel for regular team meetings and to Jack’s Solar Garden is considered non-reimbursable travel, while travel to project sites, off-site events/conferences, or non-team specific meetings off-site are reimbursable.

A successful Agricultural Outreach Coordinator should have superb people skills and be confident in engaging individuals from a variety of backgrounds, ages, and disciplines. An exceptional Agricultural Outreach Coordinator will be a creative problem solver helping to foresee issues with outreach and engagement activities, and providing pre-emptive solutions to address any issues. This position requires a person to be energetic, passionate, outgoing, a team player, and be able to communicate clearly.

Work hours are often flexible (day/evening; weekday/weekend) though should be agreed upon with the Executive Director. It is expected that a set number of hours of work be done each week and that the Agricultural Outreach Coordinator will notify the Executive Director of their work schedule, work activities, and changes to them over time. This is expected to be a flexible position, as in their will be specific times, including weekends, that will be required, along with biweekly one-on-ones with the Executive Director, agricultural community meetings and conferences, on-site events, and dates/times for set tours. Given the right candidate, this position could evolve into a full-time position.

SPECIFIC DUTIES:

• 40-50% - Conducting outreach through in-person meetings, phone calls, and emails (in English and Spanish) to educate agricultural community members about agrivoltaics and following up with collaborating agribusiness startups.
• 20-30% - Managing existing relationships with collaborative organizations such as incubator programs and funneling pathways for potential farmers.
• 10-20% - Creating outreach materials and presentations, researching agrivoltaics to be informed and able to share knowledgeably with the public, and strategically organizing outreach activities.
• 10-15% - Administrative duties including budgeting, fundraising, and regular meetings.
• 10-15% - Being at Jack’s Solar Garden to learn about agrivoltaics from staff and research partners, and attending/supporting events and other on-site activities, or traveling to conferences and off-site events to represent the Colorado Agrivoltaic Learning Center.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Experience in an environmental, agricultural, or educational related field.
• 2 years experience in a relevant field.
• Excellent writing and presentation skills.
• The ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously.
• A self-starter - this is an independent and flexible role in both workload and time.
• The flexibility to attend after hours and weekend meetings/events.
• Experience in independent study or research – collecting information, summarizing research.
• Interest in farming, outdoor activities, biology, environmental sciences.
• First-class organizational skills.
• A strong ethical code.
• Maintain a positive attitude and be open to feedback.
• Fluent in English and Spanish.

Preferred:

• Degree in an environmental, agricultural, or educational related fields.
• Teaching or community organizing experience.
• Unflappable when disorganization or oversights occur.
• Enjoys interacting with a wide audience to learn from and teach to.
• 3-5 years of experience working with or within the latino community on Colorado’s Front Range.
• Farming or ranching experience.
• Strong connections in Spanish-speaking communities along the Front Range.

POSITION TYPE/WORK SCHEDULE:

• Wage is $25 / hour.
• Hours worked is negotiable.

OUR FISCAL SPONSOR:

The Colorado Agrivoltaic Learning Center is a project of the Colorado Nonprofit Development Center (CNDC) and all employees are CNDC employees. CNDC is dedicated to equal employment opportunities in any term, condition, or privilege of employment. CNDC prohibits unlawful discrimination against applicants or employees based on race, color, national origin, ancestry, creed, religion, sex, age 40 and over, disability, genetic information, veteran status, sexual orientation, marital status, gender expression or any other characteristic protected by state or local law. This policy applies to all employees.

For more information on CNDC, please visit www.cndc.org.